


like an elephant

by csmithman



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fictober, Fluff, M/M, Memories, Miscommunication, PINING KEITH, bonding moment, but also pining lance, oblivious lance, paladin shenanigans, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-11
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-07-29 10:07:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16262015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/csmithman/pseuds/csmithman
Summary: Lance keeps insisting he has a memory like an elephant (despite having the worst memory, ever). For some reason, this upsets Keith. Lance is confused.For Fictober Day 11: “But I will never forget!”This is my first fic!





	like an elephant

**Author's Note:**

> For Zen, who is an enabler and must answer for what she has done. I have never written fic before, but Klance stole my heart and my soul and now I can't help it. Please let me know what you think!

Lance stares at the two people across from him. The two people he trusted most in the world. His teammates. His _friends_. He never thought he’d face such a betrayal from _them_ , of all people.

 

Hunk looks scared. Pidge looks stoic.

 

“I’m sorry Lance,” Hunk whispers. “If there was any other way…”

 

“Do it, Hunk,” Pidge scolds. “No mercy.”

 

Hunk winces, looking like a kicked puppy.

 

“Draw four.”

 

Lance shrieks in frustration as Hunk places the Altean equivalent of an Uno draw four card.  _ He was so close _ . He’d had Uno, for crying out loud, when Hunk --  _ Hunk _ \-- betrayed him. Pidge cackles with glee as Hunk sinks further into shame.

 

“Hunk!” Lance shouts. “I thought we were friends! After everything we’ve been through together! I thought you were the one person I could trust, above all else. But no! I am  _ betrayed _ .”

 

“It was the only thing I could play, Lance!” Hunk tries to argue. But Lance won’t be fooled. That teddy bear is  _ vicious  _ when it comes to Uno.

 

This isn’t the first time this exact conversation has happened, and it likely won’t be the last. As roommates at the Garrison, Hunk and Lance had initiated game nights to bond, which quickly turned into squabbling over accusations of cheating and betrayal as they became close friends. When they’d gone into space, they missed their tradition. Luckily, Coran had scrounged up some cards that were close enough to Uno to work with. Pidge had started joining them, only adding to Lance’s frustration -- and enjoyment, to be honest. He loved hanging out with his friends. And honestly, he won enough that he was willing to take the occasional loss.  _ Not  _ that he’d let it go easily, of course.

 

“Betrayal. I never thought I’d see the day. Now Pidge, I can see, but you, Hunk? You were my angel. The light of my life. Now…” He tries to keep a straight face, but Hunk’s smirk and Pidge’s continued laughter makes it hard. “Now I can’t even look at you.”

 

“What is going on?” Keith comes rushing into the room, eyes wide. “I heard screaming?”

 

Pidge’s cackling grows louder and Hunk even starts laughing as Lance flushes. His friends are used to his antics, but Keith? Keith will probably think he’s stupid for getting upset over a card game. Not that Keith needed another reason to think Lance is stupid, but still. It’s not what he would have wanted.

 

Well. It’s too late to look cool now. Keith has already seen the card game, and can tell that no one is injured. He relaxes somewhat, but gives Lance a skeptical look.

 

Nothing else to do. He’s got to own this.

 

“Keith. Buddy. My man. Would you  _ believe  _ the betrayal? From  _ Hunk  _ of all people. This is unforgivable.”

 

“Lance,” Keith starts to scold, but there’s a smirk on his face. “It’s Uno. It’s not exactly life or death.” Hunk nods along vigorously.

 

“Nope! Unforgivable. Sorry  _ not  _ sorry, Hunk. But I will never forgive.  _ And I will never forget _ .”

 

For some reason, that wipes the smile, small as it was, off Keith’s face. He scowls and leaves the room, huffing about training and doing something  _ productive  _ with his time. Lance turns and looks at Hunk and Pidge, who are just as confused as he is.

 

“That was… weird,” Pidge states the obvious.

 

“Do you think we should have invited him to join us?” Hunk, ever the peacemaker, looks upset. Lance can’t have that, betrayal or no.

 

“No, he’s fine. He probably doesn’t even know how to play Uno. Besides, it’s our tradition! Come on, let’s keep playing. I can still come back, just you watch!” Hunk and Pidge groan, but the light atmosphere returns. Mission accomplished.

 

Lance can’t help but wonder, though: what  _ is  _ Keith’s problem?

 

***

 

A few days after what Lance has taken to calling “the Uno Incident,” he’s prepping for a supply run. They’ve run out of some necessary essentials, because apparently it takes a lot to keep a 10,000 year old castle/spaceship up and running. Pidge and Hunk are working on some technical updates, and Shiro is staying to help Allura and Coran with strategizing… which just leaves him and Keith.

 

He’s not going to lie, he’s a little nervous. Things with Keith have been weird lately. Of course, things with Keith are always a little weird. At first things were tense, as rivals forced to work together as teammates. But over time, they’ve gotten closer. They’re friends, or at least friendly. At least, Lance likes to think so.

 

But ever since the Uno Incident, things have been more strained. It’s like going back to how things used to be, and Lance isn’t happy about it. He  _ likes  _ the way things have been lately. He  _ likes  _ being friends with Keith. But he has no idea what’s been bothering Keith lately, and it’s not like Lance can just  _ ask _ .

 

Whatever. Far be it from Lance to understand the inner workings of Keith’s mind. They have a mission -- easy as it is, it’s still a mission -- and they’re going to do it. If it wasn’t for Keith, Lance would be thrilled. A trip to the space mall? A quick ride in Blue? No battles? Sounds ideal. Even with Keith it would be fun -- Keith  _ can  _ lighten up, from time to time, and he’s fun to spend time with.

 

But not like this. Lance sighs. He’s just going to do his best and get through this. Coran needs these supplies.

 

…

  
Speaking of which, Coran has been speaking to him for what seems like a good few minutes while Lance spaced out and thought about Keith. Not good.

 

He tunes back in to hear Coran say “...did you get all that, number three?”

 

Very not good.

 

He grins sheepishly and feels his face flush red. Of course, that’s the exact moment that Keith walks in, because when does Keith ever  _ not  _ see Lance doing something stupid? But rather than mocking him, as Lance suspects, Keith actually looks concerned.

 

Lance clears his throat.

 

“Sorry, Coran, I kind of spaced out… A lot on my mind, you know?”

 

Coran gives Lance a look that’s somehow equal parts exasperated and sympathetic, which to be honest is not unusual.

 

“Lance, these supplies are important. We’re trusting you two to get them, can you handle that?”

 

“Yes, of course! It won’t happen again. Tell me what we need, I’ll make sure we get it.”

 

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather have a list?”   
  


“No need!” Lance interjects.”I’m like an elephant, once you tell me something I never forget.”

 

Keith’s face falls into a much more familiar scowl even as Coran, confused, mutters “...elephant?”

 

“Better write it down, Coran,” Keith argues. “The only thing elephant-like about Lance is his ears.”

 

As Lance squawks with outrage -- his ears are  _ not that big _ , thank you very much -- Keith stalks out of the room, leaving Lance to explain elephants to a very confused Altean.

 

Great. Just great. This is going to be a fun mission, isn’t it?

 

***

 

They survive the space mall mission, but it was definitely draining. Keith spent the entire time scowling and lecturing Lance about staying on task. He didn’t even get a chance to check out some of the cool stores. His skin care supplies were running low, it would have been nice to shop around, but _nope_! Not with angry Keith around.

 

Well. It’s over. They got the supplies for the ship, Coran was appeased, and nobody strangled anyone else. All in all, a successful mission for the two of them.

 

But Keith is very definitely  _ off  _ lately. It’s starting to really bother Lance. Obviously he’s done something to upset Keith, but he can’t for the life of him think of  _ what _ . They were getting along fine, friends, even, then all of the sudden -- nothing. Worse than nothing. Back to square one.

 

And he can’t stop thinking about it! It doesn’t help that he and Keith tend to spend a lot of time doing the same work. Neither of them is a tech genius like Pidge or Hunk, or great at planning like Shiro, so they tend to get the more straightforward tasks.

  
Like right now: Lance and Keith are on the bridge, awaiting a call from an allied planet. Obviously Allura is going to handle the actual discussion, but she doesn’t have the time to sit around and wait for the call, so that’s where Lance comes in.

 

He’s not actually sure why Keith is there. It’s not really a two-person job, and the tense silence is  _ killing  _ Lance. But he doesn’t want to tell Keith to leave and make things worse. He’ll just wait it out. He can do it. A little awkward silence is nothing Lance McClain can’t handle.

 

…

 

Okay, Lance can’t handle it. He hates silence, especially awkward silence, and he’s going to die if he and Keith sit there like this any longer. He made it… three dobashes. Not his best effort, but maybe he can redeem himself by figuring out what’s wrong with Keith?

 

“Hey, man,” he says, breaking the silence. Keith looks up, meeting Lance’s eyes for the first time all day. But, contrary to what Lance expected, he doesn’t look angry. Instead, Keith’s unfairly pretty eyes are -- what  _ is  _ that? He looks almost guilty, which only makes Lance more confused. What could Keith have to feel guilty about? Lance is pretty sure that whatever is going on, is his fault… even if he’s not sure  _ what  _ he did wrong.

 

And now Keith’s eyes are confused. Right. Lance has been staring at him, again. Good work, McClain, that won’t make things even more awkward than they already are. He scrambles to find the words.

 

“Uh,” Lance clears his throat. Why is this so  _ awkward _ ? It’s never this hard to talk to Hunk, or Pidge, or even Shiro… “Is everything alright, Keith? It’s just that lately… lately you’ve seemed kind of off. Did I do something?”

 

Keith’s expression softens.

 

“No, Lance, you haven’t done anything. Sorry. I’ve just been, I don’t know, tired lately. That’s all. Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable.”

 

Okay, that was much nicer than most of their interactions lately, and Lance doesn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth, but he doesn’t buy it. Keith looks shifty. There’s something he’s not saying. And as much as Lance likes Keith not being mad at him, he, naturally, feels the need to push his luck.

 

“You didn’t make me feel uncomfortable, Keith, of course not. I just can’t help but feel like I’ve done something to upset you. I don’t know, it seemed for awhile like we were actually starting to be friends, but lately you seem mad at me?”

 

“We are friends,” Keith interjects. “Of course we are--”

 

“Then what gives? If I’ve done something to upset you, I want to know so I can make it right. I don’t like my friends being upset with me. Just ask Hunk, I’m a wreck.” Keith looks hesitant, but Lance senses that he’s almost ready to give in. “Come on, Keith,” he says softly. “You can talk to me about anything, you know that, right?”

 

Bullseye. Lance can practically see the moment Keith gives in. He sees Keith steel himself, taking a deep breath in. Okay, so this is the moment. But what moment?

 

“You… you’re right. Something is bothering me, but it’s not your fault. It’s--”

 

An annoying noise cuts Keith off mid-sentence. Lance takes a minute to remember what that noise is -- it’s the vid caller. Of course,  _ now  _ is the time for the call to come through. Now that he’s gotten Keith to open up, the universe just  _ has  _ to interrupt. And of course, Keith looks equal parts annoyed and relieved at the interruption -- as if he sees an escape. Well, if he thinks Lance is going to let this one go, he’s got another thing coming.

 

But that can wait. After all, this is his job. He’s the Blue Paladin of Voltron, and Allura asked him to answer the call from their allies. Lance shakes off the moment, and plasters on his trademark grin as he accepts the call, seeing a familiar friendly mermaid on the other end.

 

“Plaxum! How nice to see you again! Allura didn’t tell me who was calling.” The mermaid giggles even as Keith rolls his eyes.

 

“Lance! It’s nice to see you too. I didn’t know you’d remember my name, you must meet so many people!”

 

“Well,” Lance answers, trying not to be distracted by Keith inching his way out of the room, “I do meet a lot of people. But I  _ never  _ forget a pretty face!” Plaxum laughs again and Lance feels successful, until he notices Keith. No longer trying to sneak out, Keith has frozen -- tense and  _ angry _ . That look is a lot more familiar. Lance has seen a lot of that look lately, but what gives?

 

Lance wants to push, wants to ask Keith what’s wrong, but Allura is counting on him to speak with Plaxum until she can get there to handle the diplomacy. But Lance can’t help but feel like the perfect moment just slipped through his fingers. The perfect moment for what, he doesn’t know, but he knows he missed something important.

 

There’s nothing he can do right now, though. As Keith scowls and leaves the room in a huff, Lance turns his attention back to Plaxum. He makes small talk with her while waiting for Allura to come take over, but he can’t keep his mind off the  _ look  _ on Keith’s face. It wasn’t just angry, but Lance can’t begin to understand what’s going on.

 

But it’s about time he found out.

 

***

 

Allura breezes onto the bridge, thanking Lance for his effort before dismissing him. He waves goodbye to Plaxum and sets off to find Keith. Whatever’s going on, it’s time to get things out in the open.

 

Except he can’t find Keith. He looks first in the training room, but is surprised to find the red paladin _not_ there, for once. He checks the kitchen, where Hunk says he hasn’t seen Keith all day. Lance knocks on Keith’s door, but gets no answer. Frustrated, he checks with Shiro.

 

“Shiro, do you know where Keith is? I need to talk to him but he’s not in any of his usual places.”

 

“Maybe he needed some alone time, Lance. You could talk to him later?”

 

Okay, Shiro looks shifty. That’s unexpected. Usually Shiro is pushing Lance and Keith to get along, so you’d think he’d want Lance to go apologize for whatever it is he’s done. Clearly, Shiro knows something about what’s bothering Keith, which only frustrates Lance more. He knows Keith and Shiro are close, so it makes sense that Keith would talk to him, but why couldn’t he talk to Lance? It’s Lance that Keith has a problem with, not Shiro.

 

He goes for broke.

 

“Look, Shiro, obviously something is wrong. I don’t know what’s going on with Keith, but I know it has something to do with me, so I want to fix it. And I can’t do that if I don’t know where he is. I promise I’m not going to start a fight. I just need to talk to him.”

 

Shiro looks swayed by Lance’s earnest appeal, but his loyalty to Keith runs deep. Finally, he sighs.

 

“It would be better to just get this over with,” he mutters. Lance isn’t sure what that means, but inwardly cheers at the victory. “He’s on the observation deck.”

 

“Thanks Shiro! You’re the best!” Lance calls out as he turns and rushes down the corridor. He thinks he hears a sigh, but chooses to ignore it. Right now, he’s on a mission. Find Keith. Figure out what’s going on. Fix things.

 

He reaches the observation deck and slows down. He knows the observation deck, of course. He comes here a lot, especially when he can’t sleep. He’s always loved the stars, and loves that the castleship gives him the opportunity to see so much of space at once. But he’s never run into Keith there.

 

As he approaches the doorway, he pauses. Keith is sitting on the floor in front of the viewscreen, curled into a tight ball. He looks… sad. Of course, he looks beautiful. Keith always has an air of grace about him, but in front of the stars, with the shimmering darkness of space, he looks truly otherworldly. But Lance can’t help but feel like Keith is… heartbroken, almost.

 

He swallows harshly. No matter. Keith may be sad, but they have to talk about whatever is going on. He knocks on the door jam.

 

“I said I just want to be alone, Shiro,” Keith responds without even looking.

 

“Uh, not Shiro,” Lance responds, causing Keith’s head to whip around so fast it probably hurt his neck.

 

“Oh,” Keith says. Just oh. That’s very not helpful. It’s not an angry oh, but it’s definitely not a friendly oh. As Lance makes his way over, Keith turns his face back to the stars. Looks like this isn’t going to be an easy conversation, but Lance will make it work. He always does. He folds himself onto the ground next to Keith and waits.

  
And waits.

 

And waits.

 

Okay, obviously if he’s going to wait for Keith to speak first he’s going to be waiting all day. This isn’t working. It’s up to Lance to break the silence, once again. He feels the frustration boil up again. Why is it so difficult?

 

“Look, Keith. Whatever’s going on, you need to just tell me. Obviously something I’ve done or said is upsetting you. I saw your face when I was talking to Plaxum. Please just tell me, so we can fix this.”

 

“It’s not…” Keith trails off. He huffs angrily. “It’s not something you can fix. Just let it go, Lance.”

 

“How am I supposed to just let it go?”  _ Let it go? _ Seriously? Keith thinks he can just tell Lance to forget it and they can move on? As if! The anger comes rushing back full force. “Everytime we hang out you look like you want to bite my head off! I can tell you’re mad at me! But I’m not a mind reader, Keith! You have to tell me what’s wrong or it’ll just keep happening! Is that what you want?” Lance knows he’s yelling, but honestly. This is getting out of hand. He knows Keith isn’t one for open communication, but tough luck. He’s not letting this one go.

 

Luckily, his anger seems to spark a similar reaction in Keith, his eyes lighting up with deep buried frustration.

 

“I said,  _ let it go, Lance! _ I already told you it’s not something you can fix, so why do you always have to  _ push? _ ”

 

“I’m pushing because I want to know what I did wrong! Forgive me for caring when I’ve upset a friend! And I bet I  _ can  _ fix it!”

 

“You can’t so just  _ drop it! _ ”

 

“Tell me what I did then! Prove I can’t fix it!”

 

“You  _ FORGOT _ .”

 

Oh. That… that was not what Lance was expecting. And from the looks of it, Keith wasn’t planning on actually saying it, either. The air is still, quiet -- a far cry from the angry yelling that was just filling the room.

 

“I… forgot?” Lance is confused, but Keith is looking heartbroken again, so he needs to know. He needs to get to the bottom of this so that Keith never has to look at him like that again.

 

“It’s stupid,” Keith mumbles, face red and eyes downcast. “It’s just… You keep saying how great your memory is, how you never forget. So I must have been pretty unimpressive for you to forget.”

 

“Forget what? Keith, what are you talking about? You’re the one who couldn’t remember my name when we met!” Keith looks chagrined.

 

“I know, and I’m sorry, but I’m not good with names. But you apparently have this great memory -- and yet you still forgot--” Keith’s voice drops to a whisper. “You forgot the bonding moment.”

 

Oh.

 

_ Oh _ .

 

The  _ bonding moment _ .

 

As in, “We had a bonding moment!” as in, “I cradled you in my arms!” As in, apparently, something that meant a lot to Keith.

 

As in, “that thing Lance totally  _ didn’t  _ forget about, but didn’t want to admit how nice it was to not be fighting Keith, how nice it was to work together, how nice it was to see Keith smile. How  _ nice  _ it was to be  _ cradled _ ."

 

Great. So, because Lance couldn’t handle having a crush on his self-proclaimed rival, he ran away from a moment that apparently meant something to the other. And because he refused to admit the moment they shared, Keith feels like Lance doesn’t care. And he’s hurting.

 

Now Lance has to fix this. Because, contrary to what Keith assumes, he  _ can  _ fix this. It just means being willing to completely embarrass himself. But it’s worth it to save Keith hurt.

 

“Keith, I… I gotta be honest with you, man. I have like, the worst memory ever. I forget things all the time, I have to write notes on my hands. I just joke around. So, like, don’t feel like I’ve remembered everything but you.” Keith looks up, hope in his eyes. “And… I may have, maybe, a little, lied. About not remembering the bonding moment. I  _ do  _ remember.”

 

He meets Keith’s eyes, seeing hurt morph into shock.

 

“But -- but why would you lie about that? I thought it was the start of maybe being friends! It made me feel like you didn’t hate me, then you turned around and said it was nothing!” Keith is bewildered, hurt. All because of Lance’s cowardice.

 

“That’s…” he sighs. “That’s exactly why I lied. Because I don’t hate you. It was just easier to pretend I did. Easier than admitting the truth.”

 

“What truth?” Lance doesn’t think he’s ever seen Keith look so confused. It’s now or never.

 

“The truth… the truth is that I _like_ you. I have for a long time. Since the Garrison. I mean! You were so cool, and talented, and obviously gorgeous. And then there was me, a scrawny kid from Cuba. How could I ever hope to get your attention? So I did the only thing I could, which was to pretend I hated you. It was easier that way, easier to turn everything into a competition. And when we met up and you didn’t remember me, it made me feel like I was nothing, and I didn’t want to admit that I still liked you so I kept up the act--” he’s rambling, he knows, but the look on Keith’s face is pure and utter shock, and he couldn’t stop the stream of words if he tried. “And then we were in space and you were cooler than ever and so much better than me and I felt, like, really insecure, okay? But you were finally noticing me, and I liked that, even if it wasn’t in a good way, but at least I knew where I stood? And then. The Bonding Moment. Where suddenly it seemed like there could be something more. I panicked. I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t know what to think, so I lied, and I’m sorry, Keith, I really am--”

 

Keith -- _thankfully_ \-- cuts Lance off with a hand over his mouth.

 

“Slow down. Breathe, Lance.” The look on Keith’s face is no longer shocked. Still a little surprised, sure, but also --  _ fond _ ? “Let me get this straight. You lied about not remembering the bonding moment because you had a crush on me and you panicked?”

 

Lance feels his face flush beet red, but Keith’s hand is still covering his mouth, thankfully preventing him from another anxious rant. Instead, he nods, more embarrassed than he thinks he’s ever felt.

 

“And you’ve been competing with me to get my attention?”

 

Another nod. Keith starts to smile -- just a little smile, but definitely there. And now Lance is the confused one. Isn’t Keith supposed to hate him? Mock him? At the very least, pity him for having a crush on someone so obviously out of his league? His confusion must show on his face, because Keith laughs quietly, and it’s the most beautiful thing Lance has ever heard.

 

“Lance, you’re an idiot.” Okay, that was harsh, but it’s hard to feel insulted when Keith’s smile is growing. “Do you know why I was so upset that you forgot? I was upset because I like you, too. And I thought, after that, that maybe we had a chance. So you saying you forgot was, well, really hard to deal with. If you had just  _ said something  _ from the start, we could have avoided all this, you know.”

 

Lance is. Well. Lance is  _ confused _ . Because it sounds an awful lot like Keith, the boy of his dreams, just said he  _ likes Lance back _ . Which is impossible. But he looks at Keith and sees said boy of his dreams smiling back at him, more tenderly than Lance thinks he’s ever seen Keith look at something. Maybe… maybe this is real?

 

He removes Keith’s hand from his mouth, but doesn’t release it. Instead, ignoring the tingles he feels, he holds on tight.

 

“Keith you -- you  _ like  _ me?”

 

Keith rolls his eyes, but it’s unbelievably  _ fond _ .

 

“Yes, Lance, I like you.”

 

“Oh,” he answers. “I was not expecting that. I honestly don’t know where to go with that.”

 

“Well,” keith starts with a smirk. “I like you. You like me. Seems to me like it’s pretty straightforward.” He tightens his grip on Lance’s hand, and Lance feels unbelievably  _ warm _ .

 

“Oh,” is all he says again. But now he’s smiling too. This is -- this is  _ good _ . This is  _ much  _ better than Lance thought this conversation would go. Much better than any dream he’d had of confessing to Keith. Because even in his dreams, he never fully believed that Keith would reciprocate his feelings. And he never could have imagined the warmth of Keith’s hand around his, or the affection shimmering in Keith’s pretty eyes.

 

“So…” Keith drawls, amusement in his eyes. “You think I’m gorgeous?”

 

Lance flushes, but bites back.

 

“Obviously. You’d have to be model quality to get away with that haircut,  _ mullet _ .”

 

“Ugh, always with the hair!” But Keith is smiling. “I’m choosing to focus on the fact that you called me gorgeous.”

 

“That’s fair,” Lance purrs, moving closer. “Why do you think I remember the bonding moment so clearly? I meant it when I said I never forget a pretty face.”

 

“Too soon, Lance. I still haven’t forgiven you for lying about that.” There’s mischief in Keith’s face, though, and he leans in, too.

 

“How can I ever make it up to you?” They’re close. So close.

 

“Welllll,” Keith draws it out. “I suppose, if you  _ really  _ wanted to apologize, I  _ might  _ be willing to forgive you -- if you kiss me?”

 

Keith looks slightly hesitant by the time he finishes the statement, but it’s all the motivation Lance needs. He closes the remaining distance and presses his lips to Keith. It’s nothing particularly scandalous, but quiznak, it’s nice. He’s dreamt of kissing Keith so long, and he can’t believe it’s finally happening. And then Keith kisses him back, and he loses all train of thought.

 

Lance isn’t sure how long they spend, on the floor of the observation deck holding hands and lazily trading kisses. But it’s somehow both an eternity and not nearly long enough. When they finally pull apart, they don’t go far, leaning into each other’s space. There’s the softest smile on Keith’s face, and Lance is sure he has one to match.

 

“I guess you’re forgiven, then,” Keith says, and Lance takes a moment to remember what they were talking about. “But--” and there’s a warning in Keith’s eyes “--you  _ better  _ not forget this moment.”

 

Lance can’t help but smile even more.

 

“Are you kidding me? I told you I remember. But don’t worry,  _ I will never forget this _ .”


End file.
